by Lauren RevansMental health campaigners can congratulate themselves this week on being one-step closer to stamping out discrimination against job applicants with mental health problems.
Solicitor general Vera Baird has promised to bring an amendment to the
next stage of the Equality Bill to address complaints of discrimination
against job applicants with mental health problems.
But will she go far enough? Campaigners want her to follow America's lead, and limit the use of pre-employment health questionnaires to where they relate to the ability of an applicant to perform specific job-related functions.
Such a change is particularly important at a time when employers appear to be tightening their pre-employment health questionnaires following Cheltenham Council's unsuccessful attempt to sue its former chief executive after she failed to mention past episodes of depression when applying for the post.
Cheltenham and some other councils have responded by drawing up new pre-employment questionnaires that ask more direct questions and for far more detail about specific conditions. The potential for greater discrimination as a result of this development is obvious. Banning pre-employment questionnaires in at least the majority of cases would ensure this potential cannot be realised.
But will she go far enough? Campaigners want her to follow America's lead, and limit the use of pre-employment health questionnaires to where they relate to the ability of an applicant to perform specific job-related functions.
Such a change is particularly important at a time when employers appear to be tightening their pre-employment health questionnaires following Cheltenham Council's unsuccessful attempt to sue its former chief executive after she failed to mention past episodes of depression when applying for the post.
Cheltenham and some other councils have responded by drawing up new pre-employment questionnaires that ask more direct questions and for far more detail about specific conditions. The potential for greater discrimination as a result of this development is obvious. Banning pre-employment questionnaires in at least the majority of cases would ensure this potential cannot be realised.
I can see for certain positions how health-related questions are necessary, but for the most part those kinds of questions should be limited. I have never come across questions related to health in job searches, and the company that I now work for uses a PEO to administer any pre-employment questions. When I had taken the pre-employment test, I hadn't come across any health-related questions except for limitations of lifting heavy items, etc.